CWRU WIT hosted a video panel discussion in May with three Case Western Reserve University students who shared their experiences and advice for women looking for careers in technology.
Here are highlights from the segment.
Anna Sedlackova, a BS in Computer Science with Software Engineering depth, currently finishing her MS in Computer Science with Artificial Intelligence depth.
Anna first started studying Mechanical Engineering at CWRU as an international student. Only when she began applying for internships did she realize that most U.S. companies would not hire international students. This became an obstacle that eventually led her to transition into Computer Science – the field that seemed to offer more employment opportunities for someone who planned to stay in the U.S. post-college.
Nsisong Udosen, a BA in Human-Computer Interaction and Business Management.
Initially, Nsisong chose a Computer Science major at CWRU. After her first two internship experiences, however, she realized she was more interested in technology -- specifically, in the “humanistic elements to it.” So she decided to transition into the Human-Computer Interaction program, which also gave her an opportunity to explore a variety of areas of study, from data science to design anthropology: “I’ve taken data science but I'm also doing a capstone on design anthropology and looking at hackathons … and how anthropological frameworks can be applied there. So, it's been a really cool mix.”
Brianna Lemon, a Computer Science and Marketing major and a recent CWRU graduate. Brianna moderated the panel.
For Brianna, the main motivation for choosing a Computer Science major was her interest in human-focused applications and user-friendly experiences of technology: “How do we get people more involved with technology and how can we make it more user-friendly? ... I like to understand how things work and be able to expose other people to it. So that's what really drew me to technology.”
To watch the discussion segment about “Why We Chose Our Majors,” click here.
To watch the full panel discussion, click here.